Haas confirm 2019 driver line-up

Haas Formula One have confirmed that they will be retaining Kevin Magnussen and Romain Grosjean as their drivers for the 2019 season, despite recent rumours linking the team with a swoop for either Esteban Ocon or George Russell - both of whom have ties to Mercedes.

The American outfit have been biding their time to announce their driving partnership for next season due to the many changes to the 2019 grid over the summer. Daniel Ricciardo, Pierre Gasly, Charles Leclerc, Kimi Raikkonen, to name a few, will all feature for a new team, while Fernando Alonso has announced his departure from F1 altogether.

This week, Haas were linked with a move for either Ocon or Russell, but with the team having a working relationship with Ferrari, they decided against recruiting one of two Mercedes juniors.

Instead, Magnussen and Grosjean have been retained, and team boss Guenther Steiner has revealed that the duo's experience was key to the decision.

“From the very beginning, we needed experienced drivers to hasten the development of our car and our team, and we have two very good and experienced drivers in Romain Grosjean and Kevin Magnussen," Steiner said.

"We’ve improved drastically from last year to this year, so retaining both drivers was a pretty easy decision. think the 100-point barrier should be and will be broken, and we’ll do it with Romain and Kevin.

“Both drivers push each other to be better, and their collective feedback allows us to be better. It’s not a coincidence that in their second year as teammates, Haas F1 Team is having its best year. By keeping Romain and Kevin together, we aim to do even better next year.”

Magnussen and Grosjean have performed impressively this season, with the latter recovering recently with better results following the worst start to a season of his career. They occupy ninth and 14th place in the drivers' championship respectively.

MORE: Haas consider Ocon and Russell for 2019
MORE: Vettel expects Ferrari to be competitive in Russia